- Dashiell Hammett
Samuel Dashiell Hammett (May 27, 1894-January 10, 1961) was an American author of hardboiled detective novels and short stories. Among the enduring characters he created are Sam Spade ("The Maltese Falcon"), Nick and Nora Charles ("The Thin Man"), and the Continental Op ("Red Harvest", "The Dain Curse"). In addition to the significant influence his novels had on film, … - Arthur Conan Doyle
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle, DL (22 May, 1859 - 7 July, 1930) was a Scottish born author most noted for his stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, which are generally considered a major innovation in the field of crime fiction, and the adventures of Professor Challenger. He was a prolific writer whose other works include science fiction stories, historical novels, plays and romances, poetry, and non-fiction. - Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe (January 19, 1809 - October 7, 1849) was an American poet, short story writer, playwright, editor, critic, essayist and one of the leaders of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of the macabre and mystery, Poe was one of the early American practitioners of the short story and a progenitor of detective fiction and crime fiction. He is also credited with contributing to the emergent science fiction genre. Poe died at the age of 40. - Robert B. Parker
Robert B. Parker (born September 17, 1932) is an acclaimed American writer of detective fiction. His most famous works are the Spenser series, which achieved a far wider audience due to being dramatized as a television series, "Spenser: For Hire", on the ABC network during the late 1980s. His works explore aspects of human nature and incorporate considerable knowledge about the Boston metropolitan area. - Dorothy L. Sayers
Dorothy Leigh Sayers (Oxford, 13 June 1893 - Witham, 17 December 1957) was a renowned British author, translator, student of classical and modern languages, and Christian humanist. Dorothy L. Sayers is best known for her mysteries, a series of novels and short stories set between World War I and World War II that feature English aristocrat and amateur sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey. - Sara Paretsky
Sara Paretsky (b. June 8, 1947 in Ames, Iowa) is a contemporary American author of detective fiction. Paretsky was raised in Kansas. She graduated from the University of Kansas with a degree in political science. She did community service work on the south side of Chicago in 1966 and returned in 1968 to work there. She ultimately completed a Ph.D. in history at the University of Chicago, writing on The Breakdown of Moral Philosophy in New England Before the Civil War, … - G. K. Chesterton
Gilbert Keith Chesterton was an influential English writer of the early 20th century. His prolific and diverse output included journalism, poetry, biography, Christian apologetics, fantasy, and detective fiction. Chesterton has been called the "prince of paradox." He wrote in an off-hand, whimsical prose studded with startling formulations. For example: "Thieves respect property. - John D. MacDonald
John Dann MacDonald (July 24, 1916 - December 28, 1986), writing as John D. MacDonald, was an American writer best known for his series of detective novels featuring protagonist Travis McGee. MacDonald was named a grand master of the Mystery Writers of America in 1972 and won the American Book Award in 1980. Stephen King praised him as "the great entertainer of our age, and a mesmerizing storyteller." Born in Sharon, Pennsylvania, … - Robert Crais
Robert Crais (born 1953) is a contemporary American author of detective fiction. Crais began his career writing scripts for television shows such as "Hill Street Blues", "Cagney & Lacey", "Quincy", "Miami Vice" and "L.A. Law". He lists amongst his literary influences the authors Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, Ernest Hemingway, Robert B. Parker and John Steinbeck. Crais lives in California's Santa Monica mountains with his family. - Laura Lippman
Laura Lippman (born 1959) is an American author of detective fiction. - Margery Allingham
Margery Louise Allingham (May 20, 1904 - June 30, 1966) was a writer born in Ealing in London, England who produced many novels, short stories, and plays, mainly in the crime and mystery genres. She is best known as creator of the detective/adventurer Albert Campion. - Bill Pronzini
Bill Pronzini (born April 13, 1943) is a highly-regarded and very prolific American writer of detective fiction. He is also an active anthologist, having compiled more than 100 collections, most of which focus on mystery, western, and science fiction short stories. He published his first novel, "The Stalker", in 1971. However, his best known works are the Nameless Detective (fictional detective) series, which he began in 1971. As of June, 2006 there are 30 books in the series, … - Robert E. Howard
Robert Ervin Howard (January 22 1906 - June 11 1936) was a classic American pulp writer of fantasy, horror, historical adventure, boxing, western, and detective fiction. - George Pelecanos
George Pelecanos (born 1957 in Washington, D.C.) is an American author of detective fiction set primarily in the capital of the United States, Washington, D.C. - Laurie R. King
Laurie R. King (born 1952) is an American author best known for her detective fiction. Among her books are the Mary Russell series of historical mysteries, featuring Sherlock Holmes as her partner, and a series featuring Kate Martinelli, a fictional San Francisco, California, police officer. King's first book, "A Grave Talent" (1993), received the 1994 Edgar Award for Best First Novel and a 1995 John Creasey Memorial Award. - Larry Niven
Laurence van Cott Niven (born April 30, 1938 Los Angeles, California) is a US science fiction author. Perhaps his best-known work is "Ringworld" (1970), which received Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards. His work is primarily hard science fiction, utilizing big science concepts and theoretical physics. It also often includes elements of detective fiction and adventure stories. His fantasy includes "The Magic Goes Away" series, … - Georgette Heyer
Georgette Heyer (16 August 1902 – 4 July 1974) was an English historical romance and detective fiction novelist. - Edward D. Hoch
Edward Dentinger Hoch (born February 22, 1930 in Rochester, New York) is a prolific American writer of detective fiction. Although he has written several novels, he is primarily known for his vast short story output. Hoch (pronounced "hoke") began writing in the 1950s; his first story appeared in 1955 in "Famous Detective Stories" and was followed by stories in "The Saint Mystery Magazine". - August Derleth
August William Derleth (February 24 1909 - July 4 1971) was an American writer and anthologist. Though best remembered as H. P. Lovecraft's literary executor and for his own contributions to the Cthulhu Mythos genre of horror, Derleth was a prolific writer in several genres, including historical fiction and detective fiction. - Anna Katharine Green
Anna Katharine Green (November 11, 1846 - April 11, 1935) was an American poet and novelist. She was one of the first writers of detective fiction in America and distinguished herself by writing well plotted, legally accurate stories (no doubt assisted by her lawyer father). - Martha Grimes
Martha Grimes (b. 1931) is an American author of detective fiction. She was born May 2 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to D.W., a city solicitor, and to June, who owned a hotel in Western Maryland where Martha and her brother spent much of their childhood. Grimes earned her B.A. and M.A. at the University of Maryland. She has taught at the University of Iowa, Frostburg State University, and Montgomery College. - Jacques Futrelle
Jacques Heath Futrelle (April 9, 1875 - April 15, 1912) was an American journalist and mystery writer. He is best known for writing short detective stories featuring the "Thinking Machine", Professor Augustus S. F. X. Van Dusen. - Loren D. Estleman
Loren D. Estleman (born September 15, 1952) is an American writer of detective and Western fiction. He writes with a manual typewriter. Estelman attended Eastern Michigan University. He is most famous for his novels about P.I. Amos Walker. Other series characters include Old West marshal Page Murdock and hitman Peter Macklin. - Arthur Morrison
Arthur George Morrison (November 1, 1863 London - December 4, 1945) was an English author and journalist, known for his realistic novels about London's East End and for his detective stories. Morrison was born in the East End of London, on November 1, 1863. His childhood and education is unknown, though he was probably educated in the East End. By 1886 he was working as a clerk at the People's Palace, in Mile End. - Charles Willeford
Charles Ray Willeford III was an American writer. An author of fiction, poetry, autobiography, and literary criticism, Willeford is best known for his series of novels featuring hardboiled detective Hoke Moseley. The first Hoke Moseley book, "Miami Blues" (1984), is considered one of its era's most influential works of crime fiction. Film adaptations have been made of three of Willeford's novels: "Cockfighter", "Miami Blues", … - Richard Morgan
Richard Morgan (b. 1965) is a British science fiction author. Morgan studied history at Queens' College, Cambridge. After graduation he started teaching English in order to travel the world. After fourteen years and a post at Strathclyde University, his first novel was published and he became a full-time writer. The common theme to Morgan's books is that they take place in a dystopia. His attitude is summed up by the following statement: "Society is, … - Arthur Upfield
Arthur William Upfield (1 September 1890 - 13 February 1964) was an Australian writer, best known for his works of detective fiction featuring Detective Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte ('Bony') of the Queensland Police Force. - H. C. Bailey
Henry Christopher Bailey (1878 - 1961) was an English writer, author of detective fiction. Bailey wrote mainly short stories featuring a medically-qualified detective called Reggie Fortune. Fortune's mannerisms and speech put him into the same class as Lord Peter Wimsey but the stories occasionally explore the darker side, with topics like child abuse. There are several Fortune novels but these are less successful. - Lois McMaster Bujold
Lois McMaster Bujold is an American author of science fiction and fantasy works. Bujold is best known for her series of novels featuring Miles Vorkosigan, a disabled interstellar spy and mercenary admiral from the planet Barrayar, set approximately 1000 years in our future. The series demonstrates Bujold's mastery of various science fiction genres and sub-genres. Earlier titles are generally firmly in the space opera tradition with no shortage of battles, conspiracies, … - Janwillem van de Wetering
Janwillem van de Wetering (middle name: Lincoln), born 12 February 1931, is the author of a number of works in English and Dutch. He is particularly noted for his detective fiction., his most popular creations being Grijpstra and de Gier, a pair of Amsterdam police officers who figure in a lengthy series of novels and short stories. The mysteries are rich with images from Amsterdam, where they take place; some also feature a cat named Oliver. - Frank Gruber
Frank Gruber (born February 2, 1904, Elmer, Minnesota, died December 9, 1969, Santa Monica, California, USA) was an American writer, best known for his Westerns and his detective stories. He sometimes wrote under the pen names Stephen Acre, Charles K. Boston and John K. Vedder. Gruber wrote more than 300 stories for over 40 pulp magazines, … - Linwood Barclay
Linwood Barclay is a Canadian humourist, author and columnist. He writes the thrice-weekly humour column in the "Toronto Star", releases a podcast with his articles, and has published books of autobiography and humorous detective fiction. He lives near Toronto with his wife. - Jeff Abbott
Jeff Abbott (born 1963) is a U.S. suspense novelist. He has a degree in History and English from Rice University. He lives in Austin, Texas. His early novels were traditional detective fiction but in recent years he has turned to writing thriller fiction. A theme of his work is the idea of ordinary people caught up in extraordinary danger and fighting to return to their normal lives. - Émile Gaboriau
Émile Gaboriau, was a French writer, novelist, and journalist, and a pioneer of modern detective fiction. - Magdalen Nabb
Magdalen Nabb (born 16 January 1947) is a British author, most well known for the Marshal Guarnaccia detective novels. Born in Lancashire, she studied art and later pottery, which she taught in an art school. In 1975 she moved to Florence in Italy even through she didn't speak Italian. There, she continued to work on pottery in a pottery town near Florence, and began writing. It was in Montelupo that she met the model for Marshal Guarnaccia. - Batya Gur
Batya Gur (20th January 1947, Tel Aviv - May 19, 2005) was an Israeli writer, specializing in detective fiction. She received a master's degree in comparative literature from the Hebrew University. She taught literature in high schools and spent a number of years in the U.S. Gur was known for her social and political sensitivity, and has published a non-fiction book called "Next to the Hunger Road" (Keter, 1990). She has also published several works of fiction, … - Michael Harrison
Michael Harrison was the pen name of English detective fiction and fantasy author Maurice Desmond Rohan. - Patrick Quentin
Patrick Quentin, Q. Patrick and Jonathan Stagge were pen names under which Hugh Wheeler (1912-1987), Richard Wilson Webb (1901 or 1902-1965), Martha Mott Kelley and Mary Louise Aswell wrote detective fiction. In some foreign countries their books have been published under the variant Quentin Patrick. - Edogawa Rampo
Edogawa Rampo (江戸川 乱歩 "Edogawa Ranpo"), born Tarō Hirai was a Japanese author and critic. He wrote many works of detective fiction. Kogoro Akechi was the primary detective of these novels. Rampo was a great admirer of western mystery writers, and especially of Edgar Allan Poe. The pseudonym "Edogawa Rampo" is actually a Japanese rendering of Poe's name. - Rudolph Fisher
Rudolph Fisher (May 9, 1897 - December 26, 1934) was an African-American writer His first published work, "City of Refuge", appeared in the "Atlantic Monthly" of February 1925. He went on in 1932 to write "The Conjure-Man Dies", the first black detective novel. Fisher was also a physician (with a specialty in radiology), dramatist, musician and orator. Fisher was an active participant in the Harlem Renaissance, primarily as a novelist, but also as a musician.
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